Thread: DIY Canoe - Plan advice

Current status - Off the mold, wired in bulkheads and tightend things up a bit. Having not epoxied/fiberglassed before, I got the bulkheads all neat and had my first attempt at fiberglassing inside the bulkhead.... and failed. It ended up a mess .. A bit more reading required before I have another go I do believe.

What were you trying to do with the fibreglass inside the bulkhead?
pics?

I was going to try taping just the joins in the bulkhead because I wasnt confident enough to do the whole inside due to lack of experience. The tape wouldnt stay still and kept folding on it self. I got frustrated and pulled it out. Figured I could let it go off and sand back any epoxy a bit before trying next weekend.

Without pics it's a bit hard to visualise what might have been happening.
Am guessing you had the tape vertical up a right-angle joint?
Top kept peeling down?
whole mess kept sliding down?

Possibly had it too wet.
Tape seems to stick better if there's only just enough pox to make the weave go clear,
but not fill all the holes between strands. Wait for it to go barely tacky, then recoat
several times until the weave is filled and the surface flat. Unlike paint, which starts to
dry immediately as solvent flashes off, pox stays wet, runny & heavy until it is part cured. In this weather, that can be many hours.

Does that describe what was happening?

Your boat looks nice by the way.
cheers
AJ

b.o.a.t ~ "Am guessing you had the tape vertical up a right-angle joint?
Top kept peeling down?
whole mess kept sliding down?"

Yes thats exactly it. I had lathered on the epoxy, when I would touch one bit of tape others bits would move away from the ply and lift, then stick to other bits of it self. It got very frustrating.

Worst thing is now I really want to try again and It will be another week before I can due to social engagements.

ok.
ask me how I guessed that...
on second thoughts, you've probably already figured it out.

glass floats in epoxy.
idea is to apply enough pox to be thoroughly wet-out, but not enough to float.
The lighter the glass, the easier this is to do. just a little pox goes a long way.

cheers
aj

Just coasting along now, epoxy and I are now at peace with each other so all is good in the world.

Just thought I'd throw some pix up for the curious.

Very nice
Congratulations on a job well done - Cant wait for pics of the launch

cheers
Titch

Didn't tick the old thread warning checkbox and had to rewrite this...argh!

So as I was saying I've had a bit of a break from the build but have put in a bit of an effort in the last week or so.

I'm about to put some seats in however am unsure of height. Should I paddle it first with temps in place to get a feel for it or is there a formula/rule of thumb that can be applied?


Pics!

Where they end up will depend a bit on how good your balance is, how stable
the boat is, how long your paddle is, & how strong you are.

My preference is for a higher seat, maybe 2 or 3 inches below the gunn'ls.
More comfortable sitting position, & more natural paddling ergonomics with the
water a few inches below my bum. Lower is more stable, but less easy to paddle.

My old Rosco 16 had timber/cane seats suspended from the inwales.
(Later models were alloy pipes glassed into the sides - cheaper to make,
nowhere near as comfy).

hope this helps.
Boat looks great.
AJ

Cheers! I went with hanging them so I could adjust until I get the height I'm comfortable with and then I will put hollow dowel over the bolts. I may need longer bolts if I feel they need to go lower... but we will see..



Pix

I envy you guys sometimes.Drawing plans,multichine etcI desperately wanted a canoe,working on the idea that,,,,if it looks like a boat and floats? its a boat. I made my stitch and glue canoe from scratch,no plans,no experience.LOL.Ok so its a pirogue/barge,,but its fun to paddle.Good luck with yours.How ever it turns out,it's yours and you will be proud of it.

this is my effort,Big? yup.Heavy? yup.50Kg's.but it carries a family lol

Here is the finished result, It has been working well since new years day when it was taken for its maiden voyage on the Brisbane River.

Since the pictures were taken It has also gained some round screw in hatch covers to each vertical face at the ends.

I have been fishing and camping a fair bit with it in the last 9 months, I even shot some rapids with it one day when the fishing was very ordinary. I really love it and don't think I would ever part with it or make another.